Serzh Sargsyan on Karabakh issue
Serzh Sargsyan touched upon the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict resolution during a joint press conference with his Austrian counterpart. An Austrian journalist was particularly interested in finding out the Armenian side's view on the impeding circumstances for the conflict resolution.
Sargsyan presented the situation in detail.
"Generally, the current state of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict continues to be a challenge for the security of the region and Europe. We see no alternative to the peaceful settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict through the OSCE Minsk Group. Unfortunately, in the past year, Azerbaijan's policy, the belligerent declarations and the unsubstantiated self-confidence create tension at the line of contact and the Armenian-Azerbaijani border.
It was not by chance that young soldiers died as a result of the provocations in the past couple of months, leading to tension.
As you know, the leaders of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairing countries made a declaration in Los Cabos several days ago and called upon the parties to maintain the terms and demands of the 1994 ceasefire agreement and stressed that the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict must be resolved on the basis of the principles stipulated in the Helsinki Final Act, that is, no use or threat of use of force, respect for the right of nations to self-determination and maintenance of the territorial integrity of countries. We are ready to move forward on the ground of these principles, and the sooner the conflict is settled, the happier we will be. The speedy settlement of the conflict is in the interests of the peoples of Armenia and the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic. I think the international community has been able to become convinced of the reasons impeding conflict resolution. Azerbaijan has adopted a maximalist position, that is, agreeing with the three principles through words. In reality, Azerbaijan only accepts one of the three principles, and that is the principle of territorial integrity, ruling out the right of nations to self-determination and the principle of peaceful settlement of issues.
The conflict will be resolved when we manage to truly adopt these principles and turn them into our conviction," said Serzh Sargsyan in response.
